Boeing upgraded, Shopify downgraded: Wall Street's top analyst calls
The most talked about and market moving research calls around Wall Street are now in one place. Here are today's research calls that investors need to know, as compiled by The Fly.
Top 5 Upgrades:
RBC Capital upgraded Boeing (BA) to Outperform from Sector Perform with a price target of $275, up from $200. After another year of supply chain disruptions and lowered expectations in 2023, the setup into 2024 is favorable, the firm tells investors in a research note.
Argus upgraded Mondelez (MDLZ) to Buy from Hold with an $83 price target. The firm is positive on the management's long-term strategy of accelerating growth through its focus on chocolate, biscuits, and baked snacks categories as it targets 3%-5% organic revenue growth.
Raymond James upgraded Crocs (CROX) to Strong Buy from Outperform with a price target of $115, up from $98. Raymond James also added Crocs to the firm's Analyst Current Favorites List, citing increasing confidence in the setup for 2024.
Jefferies upgraded Affirm (AFRM) to Hold from Underperform with a price target of $30, up from $9.50. The shares are down 50% decline in shares since February 2022 and many of the factors driving the Underperform rating have played out, the firm argues.
Benchmark upgraded nLight (LASR) to Speculative Buy from Hold with a $17 price target after the company announced a $34.5M contract award to be executed over approximately 18 months to provide a High Energy Laser in support of the U.S. Army's Directed Energy Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense prototyping effort.
Top 5 Downgrades:
Piper Sandler downgraded Shopify (SHOP) to Underweight from Neutral with a price target of $56, down from $58. The shares at current levels hold an "untenable valuation," the firm tells investors in a research note.
Societe Generale downgraded Morgan Stanley (MS) to Hold from Buy with an $80 price target. The firm argues that the company's growth trajectory is now more uncertainty amid pressure on capital and rising deposit costs.
Citi downgraded Asur (ASR) to Sell from Neutral with a price target of $222, down from $228. The firm estimates that a 5% to 15% trim in Cancun's 2024 traffic, resulting from potential market share losses to Tulum, could reduce Asur's valuation between 4% and 12
UBS downgraded ChargePoint (CHPT) to Neutral from Buy with a price target of $2.25, down from $9.00. The company has gained lever 2 charging share this year and has 44% of the publicly accessible installed base in the U.S, but the broad customer base could also increase its topline correlation with EV deliveries and sales, and as deliveries slow, ChargePoint may see more material impact than other competitors that have lower L2 market share, the firm says.
Wolfe Research downgraded Edwards Lifesciences (EW) to Underperform from Peer Perform with a $57 price target. The firm sees risk of U.S. transcatheter aortic valve replacement disappointment in the next two years as the category matures and competition rises.
Top 5 Initiations:
HSBC initiated coverage of Estee Lauder (EL) with a Buy rating and $180 price target. The shares have lost two-thirds of their value in 24 months, and now is the time to buy ahead of a rebound, the firm tells investors in a research note.
Piper Sandler initiated coverage of LendingClub (LC) with an Overweight rating and $8 price target. The company is well positioned to see earnings growth as net interest margin inflects higher in 2024 due lower funding costs, significant cost reductions, and net charge-offs moderating in the back half of 2024, the firm tells investors in a research note.
Bernstein initiated coverage of Confluent (CFLT) with an Outperform rating and $34 price target. Confluent has "an attractive revenue story with tailwinds from cloud adoption" along with a "durable competitive position relative to hyperscalers and new entrants," the firm says.
Canaccord initiated coverage of SharkNinja (SN) with a Buy rating and $61 price target, calling it a "rare growth story in a competitive space."
Raymond James initiated coverage of First Citizens BancShares (FCNCA) with a Market Perform rating and no price target. The firm sees "several headwinds" that leave it more cautious in the near-term, including elevated net interest margin compression, below-peer credit metrics, and continued runoff of the SVB balance sheet.
